Soccer is one of the most dramatic sports in the world. Still, the ups and down of watching a match unfold on the pitch pale in comparison to the way a family feels when one of its loved ones receives a cancer diagnosis. Every day, 43 children are told they have cancer in the United States.
In September, the Tampa Bay Rowdies want to play a small part in kicking those blues in the grass. Working together with medulloblastoma brain cancer survivor and honorary Rowdie Cole Eicher, the team is spending the month of September encouraging the community to take notice of the No. 1 disease killer of children in the U.S.
Rowdies players will sport custom #GOLDTOGETHER socks at both September home matches (September 15 vs. Atlanta, September 22 vs. Richmond). The socks were co-designed by Rowdies forward Georgi Hristov, Rowdies defender Hunter Gorskie and 7-year-old pediatric cancer fighter Amelia “Mila” Peace. Thirteen-year-old leukemia survivor and official Rowdies anthem singer Marissa Peddie will sing the anthem at both matches.
If the September 15 match sells out, then the Benjamin Gilkey Fund for Innovative Pediatric Cancer Research at Johns Hopkins All Children’s Hospital will receive a $15,000 donation. The Children’s Dream Fund and BayStar Family Retreat will get a $15,000 donation if the September 22 match sells out. The club will also donate $1,000 for every Rowdies goal, plus an additional $1,000 for a shut-out.
Businesses, restaurants, schools and organizations across the Tampa Bay area are also hosting fundraising campaigns and their donations will be presented at half time during the September 15 and 22 matches. The team is asking interested in participating to please contact #GOLDTOGETHER coordinator Laura Eicher.
